Protein Cinnamon Rolls

Name: Protein Cinnamon Rolls
Prep time: 1 h 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 6 ounces fat-free cream cheese (170g); 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 to 2 tbsp almond milk; 1/3 scoop vanilla protein powder (10g); 2 tsp sweetener; 1 ¾ to 2 cups All Purpose flour (200g) + extra for rolling (I used an extra 25g); 3 scoops vanilla protein powder (96g); ½ cup + 2 tbsp 100-110 °F warm water (150 mL); 1 tbsp sugar; 1 to 2 packets active fast rising yeast (10g); 2 tbsp light butter (30 mL); 1 tbsp cinnamon; 2 tbsp zero-calorie sweetener

Written by Lauren on July 30, 2019 in 100-200 calories, Egg-Free, Low Fat, Nut-Free

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Ginormous frosted cinnamon rolls for just 190 calories and 2g of fat! These cinnamon rolls are insanely delicious and so fun to make. Even better – they are lightened up from traditional cinnamon rolls and packed with protein!

There’s no denying the melt-in-your mouth amazingness of the cinnamon roll! For most people trying to eat healthy, cinnamon rolls are typically put in the “I shouldn’t” category, but they don’t have to be! Especially with rolls that are this macro friendly, it is EASY to fit one (or even 2… or 3…) into your day!

Just look at the comparison between your classic Cinnabon roll and these protein cinnamon rolls – it is no wonder cinnamon rolls get a bad rep. They are pretty calorie dense. I just want to note here that, yes, you can eat Cinnamon rolls from Cinnabon and still live a balanced life. However, if you are trying to lose weight, it does make things a little more challenging and does require more planning to make it “fit.” With these protein cinnamon rolls, you don’t have to worry about planning your day around a single cinnamon roll. You can make one fit easily with plenty of room to eat something alongside it!

Also, just because these are made with butter and real sugar doesn’t mean they aren’t “healthy.” Everything is fine in moderation and again, unlike Cinnabon, these are pretty EASY to fit into your day.

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THESE PROTEIN CINNAMON ROLLS

They are doughy and delicious – because these are made similar to normal cinnamon rolls with flour and yeast, these rolls bring a doughy texture.
Short list of ingredients – just a couple of ingredients needed and most you are sure to have in your pantry and fridge already!
The macros are amazing! They are low-calorie, low-carb, low-fat, AND higher protein than your typical cinnamon roll. More macro magic!
They are fun and easy to make – these may not be as easy as some of my recipes (because lets be honest – most of my recipes are pretty dang easy!) but for even the amateur baker, these rolls are not hard by any means. It is fun to bake with yeast and rolling out homemade dough. I have had many mom’s tell me they made these with their kids and that they had a field day!
The frosting – enough said. Creamy vanilla cream cheese frosting. It pairs amazing on the baked cinnamon butter rolls!!

WHAT YOU NEED

FOR THE CINNAMON ROLLS:

All-purpose flour
Protein powder – I would recommend a subtle vanilla flavor for best results. I used PEScience protein powder. It mixes well and tastes amazing. If you are going to use another brand, do make sure that it is a similar whey + casein blend. (You can save 10% on PEScience products with my affiliate code LaurenFitFoodie)
Water
Sugar + more sweetener of choice – sugar to mix with the yeast and water (real sugar allows the yeast to grow best). You can use more sugar or another sweetener of choice for the inside swirl. I used granulated Splenda for baking.
Active fast-rising yeast – if you are using active dry yeast instead of fast-rising yeast, you may need to let dough sit longer as it may take longer for it to rise
Cinnamon
Butter – I used I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Light

FOR THE ICING:

Cream cheese – I used fat-free but you can use 1/3 reduced fat or regular cream cheese if you need to.
Vanilla extract
Protein powder – I used PEScience vanilla
Almond milk – or other milk of choice
Sweetener

IMPORTANT NOTES

These took a a little bit more time (and effort) than most of my recipes, but still easy to follow along! There are just a couple of parts of this recipe I want to highlight and emphasize the importance of.

Appropriate water temperature – An important key to this recipe is making sure the water is the right temperature to optimally allow the yeast to let dough rise. If the water is too hot, it will kill the yeast. If it is not warm enough, the yeast will not be activated to rise. The goal is between 100 to 110 degrees Fahrenheit, but if you don’t have a thermometer, just aim for warm water (not scalding) that feels like bath water temperature.

Mixing the dough: Initially, it will seem like there is too much flour and protein powder for it to be too dry to mix. Keep stirring, the flour will mix in and a ball of dough will form.

Kneading the dough: You want to make sure you knead the dough for at least 5 minutes before flattening it out.

Tracking tips: If you want to be the most accurate, weigh dough after it has initially been rolled (step 3) and then weigh dough again after kneading (step 4).

HOW TO STORE

Keep stored in an airtight container in the fridge to prevent hardening of the rolls. Rolls will last up to a week.

CAN THESE BE MADE IN ADVANCE?

Yes! You can go ahead and prep these rolls the night before to make it super easy the next morning! You can do this by either just prepping the dough (pausing at step 5) OR going ahead and making the rolls so that they are ready to be put in the oven!

Absolutely in LOVE with how these turned out! If you love Cinnamon rolls, I absolutely insist you try these out!

WANT TO MAKE THIS RECIPE?

If you try these cinnamon rolls and love them, please rate this recipe!

You can also tag me on Instagram, @LaurenFitFoodie. It makes my day seeing your yummy recreations!

Yield: 8